Lost and Found
by LordByronMudkippington
Summary: Dia gets lost at the train station, but luckily she ends up found by someone.


This wasn't right. Standing on her tiptoes, Dia stared at the billboard showing all of the train routes. She was trying to decipher it, but it was too confusing. All of the lines and the colors didn't mean anything to her. No matter how much she tried, she just didn't understand.

It was an accident. She had gotten separated from her family and left behind at the train station. When it happened, she wasn't concerned. All she had to do was find the next train that would take the right route and she'd be on her way. Her parents might not even realize that she was gone, and they'd be so proud of her for figuring things out all on her own.

Unfortunately, it wasn't turning out that way. Though Dia figured herself to be a smart kid, all these train routes were beyond her realm of comprehension. Which one was the train she was supposed to take again? She couldn't see the destination with all of the words shrunk down to fit on the billboard. Why did Tokyo have to be so confusing?

Tears began to well up in her eyes as she began to realize just how hopelessly lost she was. She'd never see her family again, and the train station would be her home now. It felt like the entire station was closing in on her, trapping her forever. The emotions became too much for her, and that triggered the waterfalls. She stood there and cried loudly, freaking out all the people standing around her. They all looked at her in confusion, then around for a family member to step out and quiet the crying child. No one came forth, however, leaving everyone to keep standing there awkwardly and try to pretend this wasn't happening. Dia, of course, didn't notice this, too busy sobbing about her terrible predicament.

Her crying didn't cease until she felt a gentle tug on her dress. Quieting down, she turned around to see another kid looking at her. Also a girl, she had dark red hair and concern in her amber eyes. "H-Hey, are you okay?" As soon as she asked, the girl ducked her head shyly, as if it had taken a lot of effort to even ask.

Wiping away her tears, Dia started to feel self-conscious. She'd been putting up such a fuss that everybody at the station had noticed her. How mortifying. "Y-Yes, I'm fine." It was a boldfaced lie, but she was embarrassed enough. Admitting that she was lost would be even worse.

"A-Are you sure?" The girl piped up again, forcing herself to make eye contact. "You seem lost."

"L-Lost? Me? N-No way!" She crossed her arms and stuck her nose up at the mere thought. There was no way she would admit to being lost... Although the alternative was saying nothing and having to live in the train station forever. She wouldn't survive a week living like this. "A-Ah... Alright, yes, I-I am lost."

To her surprise, that brought a small smile to the other girl's face. "W-Well, my mama knows all these routes. She can help you." Before Dia could say anything, she had her hand grabbed and tugged on. Not wanting to fall over, she ended up stumbling anyway as she was forced to follow the girl, letting out a confused yelp as she went.

Soon enough they were both standing in front of a taller woman: the mother in question, obviously. She looked down with a gentle smile. "Riko dear, did you make a new friend?"

"M-Mama, she's lost. Can you help?" Having her problems spoken aloud embarrassed Dia further, but all she could do was stare down at the ground and take it. It was too late to save face now.

With a smile, Riko's mother nodded and held out her hand for Riko to take. Now they had a chain of three holding hands as they went back to the billboard. This time, however, Dia wouldn't be the one trying to decipher it.

When they reached it, Riko's mom moved down so that she was eye level with the two kids. Her attention was on Dia. "Sweetie, do you remember which train you were supposed to take?"

"N-No," Dia sniffled. "W-We were supposed to go to... to Akihabara." With that information, Riko's mother stood back up, looking at her daughter now.

"Alright Riko dear, do you think you can find Akihabara on the map?"

"I-I can try," she responded with determination. Standing in front of the map, she began to scan over it, squinting her eyes to look at some of the words that were higher up. Soon enough, she pointed excitedly at the billboard. "There, mama! Right there!"

Following where Riko was pointing, her mother nodded. "Yes! So now, this is the route you need to take." She placed her finger on one of the colored routes, where Dia finally recognized the correct path. Her face grew redder at the panic she'd created over it.

"Th-Thank you for the help." Dia bowed her head, ready to escape the embarrassment and get back to her family. "I must catch the next train, though." She tried to leave, but a firm voice stopped her in her tracks.

"I can't allow a child to ride on a train by herself." Riko's mother offered her free hand to Dia. "We'll both go with you to make sure you reach your family safely." With wide eyes, Dia looked between mother and daughter, who both seemed resolute in helping. She couldn't say no to a parental figure, and it wasn't like she wanted to get lost again anyway. With a shy nod, she took Riko's mother's hand and followed her to the train.

* * *

She sat next to Riko on the train, unable to look her in the eye. Embarrassment still painted her cheeks over having gotten lost in the first place, and now she had to sit next to her saviors. She was thankful, but she was still really embarrassed.

"H-Hey..." It seemed that if she wasn't going to start a conversation, Riko would try. If only she had that kind of courage. "What's your name?"

"Huh? Ah... It's Dia. Kurosawa Dia."

"I'm Sakurauchi Riko. I-It's nice to meet you." Well, she had already known Riko's first name, but it was nice to know her last name too. They lapsed back into silence after that. It felt really awkward, but Dia just didn't know what to talk about. She didn't even know Riko.

"D-Do you like music?" Bless her heart, she was trying her best. Still, it was a topic that peaked her interest.

"Actually, yes. I'm trying to learn the yamatogoto." It was a work in progress, but Dia really liked the instrument, and she wanted to get even better at it.

"R-Really? Me too!" There was excitement in Riko's eyes, though she quickly backtracked, tripping over her own words. "I-I mean I don't p-play the yamatogoto, b-but I play the viola." This seemed to be something that she wanted to talk about. "I-It's fun to play, a-and I'm just getting started, but I love it."

There was something nice about the way Riko got excited over music. She felt the same way. It at least was one thing they could say they had in common. They were able to talk about music until the train reached their destination.

When they got off of the train, Dia begin to look around for any sign of her family. It didn't take long until she saw a familiar face on a nearby bench: her mother, holding a sleeping Ruby in her arms. Dia ran over towards her, noticing the surprise in her mother's eyes before she quickly attached herself to her legs.

"I'm sorry, mama! I didn't mean to get lost! I thought I was with you, and then you weren't there, and, and..." She hadn't realized she had started to cry until her mother started to run a hand across her head, trying to soothe her. There were tears falling down her cheeks, which she quickly tried to wipe away and hide from existence.

"Oh Dia honey, I'm just glad you got back to us safely." Dia scrambled onto the bench as Riko and her mother came into view. "Your father went back to the previous station to look for you, so I'll just let him know that you came back safe." When Dia noticed Riko there, she knew that she had to thank them again for their help.

"Th-thank you for helping me get back." She bowed her head to Riko and her mother in turn, getting smiles from both of them.

"We were happy to help," Riko's mother reassured. "I hope you all have a wonderful day. Say goodbye, Riko."

"G-Goodbye Dia!" For some reason, Dia didn't want them to go. She'd only just met Riko, and now they were leaving? It was so soon. Apparently Dia's mother felt the same way, because she stopped them from leaving before they could even turn around.

"Wait! I can't in good conscience let you leave without thanking you properly for helping my eldest daughter. Why don't you both join us for ice cream? Our treat."

"Oh, that's so thoughtful! What do you think, Riko?" That seemed to suit Riko just fine, who nodded eagerly at the invitation. With that settled, they just had to wait for Mr. Kurosawa to come back.

* * *

At the ice cream shop, Riko decided to go with strawberry, while Dia went with chocolate. They sat together at their own table, while their parents sat and talked at a table right next to theirs. The joys of ice cream finally got a conversation going.

"So you have a little sister?" Riko piped up between scoops of strawberry, looking towards the small bundle that was still sleeping in Mrs. Kurosawa's arms.

"Yes. Her name is Ruby." She recalled a very faint memory of a few months after Ruby was born. For some reason she just couldn't pronounce the name correctly, instead saying 'Wooby'. This was not something she would ever breathe to a soul.

"What's it like having a sister?" Riko continued, seeming to be interested in the subject. "I don't have any siblings."

Dia shrugged, not really sure how to respond. "It's alright? Ruby doesn't really do much except for cry, but she's still my sister." She didn't really think that having a sibling was such a big deal, but maybe it was to Riko. Speaking of Riko, Dia noticed that she was now looking at her ice cream.

"Ah, did you... want to try my ice cream?" Riko blushed at having been caught staring, only able to nod shyly. Dia smiled and offered the cup to Riko, who took a spoonful with a quiet 'thank you'. "Do you like it?"

"Mmhmm!" Her eyes widened as if she remembered something, then she gently pushed her own ice cream closer. "D-Do you want to try mine?"

"Ah, sure." Not wanting to seem rude, Dia took her own spoonful and tasted it. Hmm, not bad. It was no chocolate, but it wasn't bad. "It's good." That made Riko smile, which made her happy in turn. It wasn't nice to make people frown.

They talked for awhile longer, but eventually all the ice cream was finished and it was time to go. While the city was Riko's home, Dia and her family lived farther away, in a quiet oceanside town. To get home, the two families would be taking separate trains. Since they wouldn't be able to hang out often due to the distance, they exchanged addresses and promised to write each other.

As they waited to climb aboard their rides, both Riko and Dia said their goodbyes, waving to each other until they had to board. Even when they got on though, they both pressed their faces against the window and watched the other until their trains sped off and they couldn't see each other.

Dia was really excited to have made a friend from the big city, someone who made it seem not quite as scary as it had been while she was temporarily lost. The moment she got home, she was going to write her first letter. She had a big smile on her face all the way home.

* * *

It was another quiet day in the student council room. In all likelihood, not a single soul was in the entire school... except for one. Dia was sitting at her desk, dutifully fulfilling her student council work before the school was even technically open. There was no one at the school to help her, so she would have to do it all on her own.

With a new school year starting - her final one before university - she was looking through the meager stack of new student forms. She sighed softly at the sight. It wasn't a bad school by any means, but it just wasn't popular enough. She didn't want to think about the threat of contraction, but the signs were already there.

Still, she found herself smiling as she saw two familiar names: her little sister Ruby and her best friend Hanamaru. At least there were still students who wanted to go there. She'd think of a way to fix things... somehow.

As she reached the end of the pile, she pulled the final sheet over for inspection. What she got instead was quite the surprise. Her eyes widened as she looked at the name at the top of the page, stunned in disbelief. This couldn't be right. Maybe someone else had the same name. It was possible, but highly unlikely. Instead, it was most likely that the name at the top of the sheet, a name that she hadn't heard for quite a few years, was the exact same girl she'd met so long ago.

 _Transfer Student: Sakurauchi Riko._


End file.
